Looking for information on the Chinese dwarf hamster? These animals have their origins in Mongolia and the Northern areas of China. They go by the scientific name of Cricetus Griseus and they are a popular pet but not as popular as the Russian dwarf hamsters. Chinese dwarf hamsters are not technically dwarf hamsters, but they are commonly thought as such due to having a similar appearance to the Russian dwarf hamster.

Chinese dwarf hamster basics

The Chinese dwarf hamster will live about 2-3 years which isn’t long but most hamsters have a short lifespan. They average in size about 10-12cm. These hamsters have a 3cm long tail and come in two colors: normal, and dominant spot. The normal ones have a grayish brown color to them. Down the spine of this animal, you’ll find a black stripe that’s quite prominent. The ones that are dominant spot are mainly white with patches of gray-brown. Female hamsters seem to bond well together and if you’re going to have more than one make sure you have females only or males only unless you’re trying to breed your hamsters.

Some people think that females are more aggressive than males and should not be kept together. However, this may arise from females play-fighting and squeaking more than males. Social grooming may also sometimes be confused with fighting. It is not true that only males can be kept together. Regardless of the gender, it’s important to separate your hamsters immediately if they start fighting.

Chinese dwarf hamster personality

Chinese hamsters are lively and agile and they enjoy activities such as climbing, running, and jumping. Wash your hands before you pick up your hamster and use cupped hands to do it. This should be supervised by an adult if children are picking up a hamster. Make sure other animals such as a cat or dog are away from the hamster when you are playing with your pet. When you do pick up the Chinese dwarf hamster handle it carefully as it’s quite fragile. If you handle the hamster from an early age it will become tame but just be careful when doing so.

What do Chinese dwarf hamsters eat?

Water is essential for a Chinese dwarf hamster so make sure you always have a fresh supply. It’s ideal to change the water daily as it can become dirty with pellets and debris from the cage. As with other hamsters, your Chinese hamster should be given a food mix formulated specially for hamsters. Other than that, the hamster enjoys seeds, vegetables, fruit, bread and similar foods. They will also eat other creatures such as crickets on occasion.

These hamsters also need chew toys so make sure they have toys designed for hamsters and replace them when they are worn. Some hamsters will hoard food so allow them to keep it for a few days but then replace it for sanitary concerns. Make sure you remove uneaten food like fruit or vegetables before these spoil.

Your hamster’s cage

Hamsters like to have various places to roam around in so get them a half decent sized cage and the cage should have obstacles and places for them to hide out in. If there’s a more dominant hamster in the cage this allows the less dominant hamster to hide from the dominant one. Aquarium tanks work well as these are large enough. You don’t want to use regular hamster cages with wider bars because dwarf hamsters are quite small and they may escape on you or injure themselves trying to squeeze through the bars. They don’t like direct sunlight or too much heat so keep them in shady areas of a room. Wood shavings work well for bedding but avoid cedar or pine as this can impact their respiratory system. Get a wheel as this is essential for them to get exercise.

Other hamster care information

Caring for Chinese dwarf hamsters is similar to caring for other dwarf hamsters. You can visit our dwarf hamster care page to find out more about how to take care of your Chinese dwarf hamster.

You’ve probably heard or seen the term “fancy russian dwarf hamster” especially if you do your shopping at pet stores like PetSmart. Fancy Russian dwarf hamsters are not a different species of dwarf hamsters. Rather, they are just a marketing term used to described Russian dwarf hamsters (sometimes also referred to as Siberian hamsters) that are not the normal or Agouti color (black-brown with a dark grey stripe) or have different coat-types or patterns. There are only two species of Russian dwarf hamsters — the Campbell’s dwarf hamster and the Winter White dwarf hamster — and they are able to interbreed. A fancy Russian dwarf hamster is usually one of these species (more commonly the Campbell’s dwarf hamster as it comes in more colors) or a hybrid of the two.

Fancy Russian Dwarf Hamster Colors and Patterns

Below are some pictures of different colors of fancy Russian dwarf hamsters. Most of these are Campbell’s dwarf hamsters unless they are specifically referred to as Winter White. However, it is difficult to identify the actual species because of a lot of crossbreeding so some of these hamsters may be hybrids. You probably won’t know for sure unless you got the hamster from a breeder who knows exactly the genetic lines of her stock.

Note: This is not the full list of available “fancy” russian dwarf hamster colors and patterns, for a more complete table but without pictures, see this. Where the owner has labeled a hamster, we’ll use the species provided. Otherwise, it won’t be specified.

Mottled (Pattern) Campbell’s Dwarf Hamster

The “Siberian hamster” is two different species

The terms “Siberian hamster” and “Siberian dwarf hamster” are just another name for the either of the two Russian dwarf hamsters, the Campbell’s dwarf hamster or the Winter White dwarf hamster. Both of these dwarf hamsters can be found in parts of Siberia and that is why they are sometimes referred to as Siberian hamster. All the information in this blog is suitable for Siberian hamsters as they are also dwarf hamsters.

Although they look very similar, the Winter White and Campbell’s dwarf hamsters are actually different hamster species. Despite being different species, they can interbreed and create hybrid offspring. However, this does not happen in the wild though because the two species of hamsters would normally ignore each other or fight.

Siberian hamsters are difficult to tell apart

In case you were wondering what a Siberian hamster looks like, this is a normal winter white:

credit: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Primek_bed.JPG

And the one below is supposed to be a normal Campbell’s dwarf hamster (according to the owner)

Kind of similar, aren’t they? Most people are not able to tell them apart and this is a reason why hybrids are often created — because uninformed pet owners and pet shops breed them without knowing that they are different! If you have a Siberian hamster that has different colors, you might want to refer to this table to see which type your Siberian hamster is likely to be.

Hybrids of the two Siberian hamster species create problems

Creating hybrids of these two Siberian hamsters can cause many problems. For one, the Campbell’s dwarf hamster is larger than the Winter White so if they are bred and the female hamster is a Winter White, the hamster babies would be too big for her to give birth to and the female hamster would die.

Another reason is that hybrids are more prone to diseases and genetic problems. They also tend to die earlier than the purebred dwarf hamsters.

Sadly, even with these problems, some people crossbreed the two Siberian hamsters because the hybrids can have attractive colors. If you care about your dwarf hamsters, don’t buy hybrids and never breed Siberian hamsters when you are not sure which species they are.

The term “Russian dwarf hamster” is a common term for two species of hamster – the Campbell’s dwarf hamster or the Winter White dwarf hamster. It can also refer to a hybrid of the two. Russian dwarf hamsters are also known as Siberian hamsters or Siberian dwarf hamsters. The ones that are colorful and attractive are also labeled fancy Russian dwarf hamsters in pet shops. However, this is simply a marketing term and there is nothing different about a ‘fancy’ apart from its color.

General information

Both Campbells’ and Winter Whites (and their hybrids) typically measure 3 to 4 inches in adulthood. Hybrids tend to be slightly bigger. Campbells’ and Winter Whites are frequently mistaken for each other due to their similarity. At one point, they were even confused for the same species by scientists. Their lifespan is between one to three years and most of them live for around 2 years.

Russian dwarf hamster colors

Campbell’s dwarves and hybrids come in a wide variety of colors while winter whites have fewer colors. The table below lists each species and the colors they are available in. To see more colors, visit this page.

Campbell’s

Winter White

Hybrid

Normal

Normal

Orange/pudding

Black-eyed Argente

Sapphire

Brown

Opal

Pearl (pattern)

Mushroom

Dark Gray

Merle (pattern)

Mandarin

Argente

Imperial White (pattern)

Moscow

Lilac Fawn

Beige

Blue Beige

Black

Silvering

Albino

Umbrous

Chocolate

Blue

Dove

Black-eyed Lilac

Dark Beige

Red-eyed Lilac

Champagne

Black-eyed White

Red-eyed White

Platinum (pattern)

Mottled (pattern)

Mosaic (pattern)

Satin (coat-type)

Rex (coat-type)

Wavy (coat-type)

Hairless (coat-type)

Care and feeding

As with other dwarf hamsters, you’ll require the right supplies, the correct diet, and to keep their cages clean. All these and more are covered in our dwarf hamster care page.

Taming your hamster

This is a great video on taming winter whites, but can also be applied to Campbell’s and hybrids.

Taming tips

Start by giving your hamster treats so it associates you with rewards.

When attempting to tame your hamster, have its wheel out too so it feels at home.

Your hamster will run on the wheel a lot if when it’s nervous.

Instead of grabbing your hamster, lift it up with both hands.

Feed your hamster treats once it’s on your hand.

Don’t be afraid if your hamster nibbles once in a while.

If you can get your hamster to sit in your hand without trying to run away, you’ve successfully tamed it!

If you have any questions, comments, or tips, be sure to leave a comment. Thank you for reading!

Robo dwarf hamsters, or Roborovski dwarf hamsters, are the fastest and smallest dwarf hamsters. In fact, a robo dwarf hamster can run over a hundred miles in a single night. If you’ve seen them in pet shops, you’ll also notice they’re almost always on the wheel. They definitely look much more active than other dwarf hamsters.

A robo dwarf hamster measures about 2 to 2.5 inches long. Due to their size and speed, they’re not as easy to handle or tame as campbell’s or winter white dwarf hamsters. Robo dwarf hamsters originate from Russia, Kazakhstan, and northern China. In the wild, they eat grains, fruits, vegetables and small quantities of insect and meat. When kept as pets, the average lifespan of a robo dwarf hamster is about 3 years and can even go up to 4.

Here’s a video cut of a documentary on robo dwarf hamsters:

As shown in the video, robo dwarf hamsters are able to live in groups. However, this is in the wild where they have plenty of space to roam.

Pet robo dwarf hamsters may be able to live together, but only if they were raised together in the same enclosure from young. Even then, they may still end up fighting or being aggressive towards each other when they’re older and more territorial. Many people who have multiple robos living in the same cage have had injuries or even deaths resulting from fights.

If you intend to put more than one robo dwarf hamster in a single cage, you’ll probably want to check on them daily to make sure they are not fighting. They should be separated immediately if there are any signs of fighting or injury.

You should absolutely not house a robo dwarf hamster with another species of hamster or any other animal for that matter.

Robo dwarf hamster colors

You can usually find robo dwarf hamsters in two colors in stores.

AgoutiThis is the normal color for robos and is a very light brown/beige color with gray roots. Some would also describe this as sandy. Agouti robo dwarf hamsters have cute “white eyebrows” and no dorsal stripe.

White-faceThe white-face robo dwarf hamster looks similar to the agouti one except its entire face is white. You’ll sometimes find a white-face robo hamster referred to as a “husky” but they’re essentially talking about the same thing.

Other colorsOther colors may also be available but they are much rarer and usually can only be gotten from breeders. For example, a Platinum robo dwarf hamster looks like a white-face except it is lighter and can fade to pure white when they are older. Other colors include the (pure) white roborovski, red-eyed and mottled or pied.

Robo dwarf hamster care

Caring for your robo dwarf hamster is the same as any other dwarf hamster. You will need the right supplies (cage, bottle, wheel, bedding, food, etc), feed them the right diet, and keep their cages clean. All of these and more information on how to take care of a robo dwarf hamster are covered in our dwarf hamster care guide.

Taming your robo dwarf hamster

ErinsHamsters on YouTube has a great video on taming your robo dwarf hamster.

10 tips for taming your robo dwarf hamster

If your hamster is new, give it time to get used to its surroundings before trying to tame or handle it.

Only attempt to handle your hamster when it is awake. The best times are very early in the morning or in the evenings as your hamster will be awake and active at these times.

Initially, your hamster may run away after sniffing your hand or fingers. This is normal.

Let your hamster come to you instead of grabbing it. A robo dwarf hamster is usually too fast for a beginner to grab hold of properly. You can use a toilet roll or a cup and let your hamster crawl into it to move it around.

Tame your hamster in an empty box that’s low enough for you to put your hand in easily but high enough so they can’t run away.

Put your hand flat in the box and let your hamster come to you. Again, don’t try to grab it. Allow the hamster to get used to your scent.